Planning a trip to Manila
Visitor Information
The main Department of Tourism Information Centre is located on the edge of Rizal Park (TM Kalaw St., Ermita; 02-524-2345; www.wowphilippines.com.ph) and is open daily from 7am to 6pm. The helpful staff have information and brochures covering the city and beyond. There are smaller offices at each of the airport's international terminals.
The E-Z Maps series, published by United Tourist Promotions, are the best tourist maps of Metro Manila. They cost just PHP100 and are available in most bookshops.
Manila does not have a regular events-listings magazine, although several of the daily newspapers print listings supplements. Otherwise, the best bet is to find information from an online source such as Click The City (www.clickthecity.com).
Getting There
By Bus -- Manila does not have a central bus station, meaning that passengers may be dropped off at a variety of small terminals -- often little more than car parks with ticket offices -- around the city. Many of the key terminals are, however, clustered around EDSA (one of the city's main roads) in the Cubao and Pasay districts and within reach of metro stations. To complicate things further, there are dozens of private bus companies in operation and no centralized website gathering their timetables. Hotels are usually a good source of information, as is the Department of Tourism Information Centre.
By Plane -- The Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) (02-833-1180; http://manila-airport.net), around 7km (4 miles) outside the city, has four terminals. Terminals 1-3 are used for a variety of international and domestic flights, with terminal 3 boasting by far the most modern facilities. Terminal 1, on the other hand, is very dated with little in the way of appealing dining or shopping options. There is also a small domestic terminal. International-arrival formalities are usually handled fairly quickly even if the queue for immigration can appear to be a bit of a free-for-all. As in most Filipino airports, you may be asked to show your boarding pass or other ID to prove that the bags you take from the airport are in fact your own. When returning to the airport on your departure out of the country, be aware that security guards will want to see a copy of your ticket (or e-ticket printout) before allowing you into the terminal.
Getting into Town from the Airport
By Taxi -- The most convenient, albeit most expensive, way of getting into the city is by prepaid taxi. Ticket desks are signposted inside the terminals, and prices are posted to a wide range of destinations. A significantly cheaper option is to take one of the metered airport taxis from the ranks just outside the arrival area of each terminal, with a fare to Malate or Makati of around PHP200 (roughly half the price of a prepaid taxi). It should take about 20 minutes to reach either of these tourist hubs, although given Manila's traffic problems you should allow up to an hour at peak times. Avoid unlicensed drivers who sometimes approach unwary visitors in the arrivals area -- they are very likely to overcharge.
Public Transport -- Although there are even cheaper alternatives to taxis, including buses and jeepneys (modified or repurposed military Jeeps), they aren't really worth the additional trouble for new arrivals. Buses are only allowed along major roads, meaning a change of transport will probably be necessary, while jeepneys can be cramped and take routes that can be confusing to tired new arrivals.
Fast Facts
The area code in Manila is 02.
American Express (02-524-8681) has affiliate offices in Manila. Most banks in Manila have ATMs and currency exchange services.
Manila's Main Post Office (02-527-0069) is located at Liwasang Bonifacio, in Intramuros on the banks of the Pasig River. There are plenty of Internet cafes in the malls and the mini-hotel strips along Makati and Mabini avenues. Internet cafes come and go, so your best bet is to ask your hotel's concierge or the nearest tourism information office for suggestions. Most major hotels provide Internet access for their guests, but charges can be steep.
The emergency number for police is 166. For an emergency, dial 📞 7575.
Getting Around
Manila is not one city but many, a collection of conurbations that have grown together to create a whole that is commonly known as Metro Manila. Just to confuse matters, Manila (or the City of Manila) is also the name of the oldest part of the city. It includes key districts visited by tourists such as Intramuros, Chinatown (Binondo) and Malate. On the other hand, the main business district, Makati, is strictly speaking a city in its own right.
Despite this decentralized layout, Metro Manila's transport infrastructure is woefully inadequate for the volume of traffic. It sometimes seems as if the city is in perpetual gridlock. It is safe to assume that all road journeys will take longer than your longest estimate, particularly at peak times. Driving is best characterized as aggressive, and it takes a brave or foolhardy visitor to rent a car in Manila; it is also unnecessary given the low cost of public transport.
By Taxi -- Taxis are plentiful and good value in Manila, but it can be difficult to convince drivers to turn the meter on, and if they do they may want an additional fee on top of the metered fare (for example, "meter plus fifty"). This is particularly true in bad weather or at rush hours. Indeed, drivers wary of being caught in gridlock may refuse to drive to certain destinations when the traffic is at its worst. If possible, insist on the use of the meter -- but if that fails and no other taxi is available then it's important to agree on a price before starting the journey.
By Rail - The air-conditioned LRT (Light Rail Transit) and MRT (Metro Rail Transit) trains provide a welcome escape from the heat and bustle of Manila's streets, as well as interesting views from along their elevated sections. The lines are quite limited in their coverage, however (meaning long walks to and from stations), and become uncomfortably crowded during rush hour.
The LRT has two lines: LRT-1 (yellow) running from north to south and LRT-2 (purple) running from west to east. LRT-1 operates from 5am to 9:30pm; LRT-2 operates from 5am to 10pm during the week and 6am to 8pm at the weekend.
The MRT (blue) runs north to south along EDSA, one of the city's major roads. It operates from 5:30am to 10:30pm daily.
Fares on both services are very reasonable at no more than PHP20, but it's necessary to wait in line for a new ticket for each trip, and changing line counts as a new trip. You can buy "flash passes" for PHP250 for a week's travel across all three lines, but these are not available at all stations and require completion of an application form. Reloadable smart cards are available for travel only on the MRT line.
By Bus -- Local buses are allowed only along main roads, so are of limited use to most visitors. The vehicles are generally old, and many have no air-conditioning.
By Jeepney -- These iconic Filipino vehicles were born at the end of the Second World War, when enterprising locals extended the chassis of jeeps left behind by the U.S. Army and repurposed them as passenger vehicles. Riding in one is an authentic (and cheap) Filipino experience, although it may be hard for an outsider to figure out just where the jeepney is heading. Many foreign visitors also find jeepney roofs to be uncomfortably low.
By Kalesa -- These old-fashioned horse-drawn carriages are confined to certain areas of the city, including Intramuros, Malate and Chinatown. The most visitor-friendly are those in Intramuros and around Rizal Park (also known as Luneta Park), where drivers usually charge the correct prices. Expect to pay around PHP250 for an hour's tour. In Chinatown the trip should be cheaper as locals still ride kalesas, but as in Malate the drivers have gained a reputation for overcharging -- so care should be taken.
On Foot -- The large highways linking Metro Manila's component cities are not very pedestrian-friendly, and visitors will almost certainly be happier using public transport. That said, the main tourist areas of the City of Manila -- Intramuros, Chinatown, Malate and Ermita -- can be explored on foot. The same can be said for key parts of Makati, such as Greenbelt mall and its surroundings.
